subject: Keep Your Smart Phone Close to You on the Subway - Personal Safety Tips [print this page] Sometimes advances in technology and convenience come back to bite us in one form or another. In Boston, some subway-riding, cell phone users are finding themselves the target of grab-and-run thieves.
Recently the city completed the installation of cell phone service for T-Mobile customers along Boston's 11-mile Orange line. That makes it easier for more people to pull a cell phone from their purse or pocket for a quick call or text message. Unfortunately, this has not gone unnoticed by phone thieves. Phone snatching in the Boston subway system is up 70 percent in the first three months of this year as compared to 2009.
Boston plans to have phone coverage for its entire system by the end of next year. AT&T is expected to begin testing service on the Orange line soon. Many of the other 14 U.S. cities with underground subway systems New York City being a major exception are now offering some cellular coverage.
What this all means is that cellular phone users are going to have to be extra careful when using their iPhone or Blackberry on a crowded subway car. Most thieves grab phones from people not paying attention to their surroundings. Keeping a tight grasp on your phone and being aware of who is around you will make you less likely to become a target.
Placards in Boston warn, "Show how smart you are: don't show off your smart phone." That's good advice. You might want to wait to make a call until you are out of the subway and back on the sidewalk.
Keep Your Smart Phone Close to You on the Subway - Personal Safety Tips
